Who Is Ann Ashley Doohen? Meet The Alleged Mother Of Adrian Peterson’s Son Who Died After Assault

Adrian Peterson posted several messages on his Twitter account thanking his fans, friends and family for their support throughout the tough situation.
Reuters

Many questions continue to surround the death of Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson’s 2-year old son. One of them centers on the identity of the child’s mother.

EveryJoe.com reported the child’s mother is Ashley Ann Doohen. And Hollywood Life said Ann “Ashley” Doohen posted a photograph of her son as a newborn on her Facebook page Friday morning. The photo has now received several comments from people offering their condolences and prayers in the wake of the incident. However, the identity of the child’s mother has yet to be confirmed by law-enforcement officials.

[[nid:1423726]]

The Facebook page also includes an exchange between Ann “Ashley” Doohen and a Facebook account that has been linked to Joseph “Joey” Robert Patterson, the man accused of assaulting the 2-year-old.

[[nid:1423724]]

Described as the boyfriend of the child’s mother, Patterson, 27, was originally charged with aggravated assault and aggravated battery of an infant in the case. However, those charges were filed before the child’s death Friday. Police in Sioux Falls, S.D., are now considering additional charges, USA Today reported.

The toddler was in the care of Patterson at his apartment last Wednesday. A 911 call was placed requesting medical assistance for a choking child. When the emergency medical technicians arrived, authorities said, it quickly became evident that the boy’s injuries were not caused accidentally.

“As officers and first responders got there, they found [the] child was unresponsive and he was taken to the hospital,” police representative Sam Clemens told USA Today. “So they ended up calling police about that or letting them know. We had detectives talk to quite a few people to try to figure out what happened. What they ended up finding was that when the injuries happened there was one person with that child, and that person was Joseph Patterson.” Clemens added that it is believed the child’s mother was away for “a short time” and the attack occurred during that period.

TMZ reported that Peterson only recently learned the 2-year-old boy was his son. It said he met his son for the first time in the hospital Thursday when the child was on life support and that he has never met the man charged with assaulting him.